OEM Dash Replacement - Who's done it?

[Rednexus]

Has anyone gone through the process of replacing a cracked dash with a new OEM dash? Mine is getting worse every day and it's driving me crazy. I've looked into the Coverlay, and they get mixed reviews and aren't that much cheaper than a new OEM dash ($300-400 vs. $600-800). I have some fear that Lexus/Toyota is going to stop producing new dashes at some point, so I'd like to do the replacement this year and hopefully have a nice looking dash for my next decade of ownership. Yes, I've already tried to call Lexus, they said the cracked dash was not noted when the GX was dealer-serviced by the PO, prior to the warranty expiration in 2017, so they won't do anything about it. I bought it in 2020 and it had minor cracks then, but has since gotten worse.

For those who have done it, how long did it take? Is this more of a one day job or a whole weekend? It looks like the steering wheel, HVAC/radio, and console all need to come out, which aren't too bad from my removal of those same items for other projects. I've done all wrenching on my GX to date (lift/headers/lots of other stuff), but have not done a dash replacement before. I'm not going to pay the dealer to do it and will DIY it....but there doesn't appear to be much info out there on others having actually DIY'd it.

 

[wrcfan]

Following along as I'm in a similar boat. I won't have time to tackle this until late in the year, but I was thinking of buying an OEM dash as well before they start getting scarce.

 

[Rednexus]

No other dash replacers so far? I may have to actually document this when I attack it and make a tread.

 

[greenscobie86]

Im interested in the same. I think I saw a shop manual procedure on how to R&R a dash panel sometime back, it seemed like a long and daunting if not particularly difficult task.

I'm building up the courage to spend the money and do the swap, my dash isn't cracked that bad but it really irks me haha.

 

[binaryaudax]

I just bit the bullet and bought a new dash. Picking it up tomorrow.

I have an ML model but went with the non-ML dash since I removed the center speaker already.

 

[Rednexus]

I just bit the bullet and bought a new dash. Picking it up tomorrow.

I have an ML model but went with the non-ML dash since I removed the center speaker already.

Sweet. Care to post some pics and an overall assessment of the difficulty level/time when you are done?

Dashes from dealers in my area are all advertised at the $827 MSRP. Some dealers in other states have the advertised as low as $605. Some list free shipping with orders >$100. Bell Lexus had them for <$400 around the holidays but told me they would not ship a dash due to damage potential. I should have just ordered 20 of them and driven a U-Haul to Arizona to pick them up for use as a future investment when Lexus stops making these.

Not sure if I should just see if a local dealer will price match, bite the bullet if they don't, or order one from out of state and risk shipping damage.

 

[jdevtac]

I plan to do it at some point. If you can pull the glove box or stereo or driver side gauge cluster or similar type jobs it doesn’t look any harder than that. I’ve similarly replaced the steering wheel and been behind almost every dash panel. It’s not difficult, just time consuming.

There is a Prado post with plenty of photos to guide you:

Prado 120 Dashboard Removal - Toyota Prado How To's, Technical Information & Reviews

Discuss any other areas about your 4x4 Toyota Prado 120.

www.pradopoint.com.au

Also google gx470 heater core replacement or similar and you will find helpful videos as well.

Example:

 

[Rednexus]

Thanks, the Prado thread looks helpful. I hope to tackle this in the next few months. I've alreadt removed the steering wheel, console, and head unit for other projects.

 

[binaryaudax]

I picked up my new dashboard from Longo Lexus this morning. As @jdevtac said, this is a relatively painless job. It took me about 2.5-3 hours to remove the old dash, swap over the parts, and install the new dash. I probably could have been done sooner but I took some time to route the wiring for the aftermarket head unit better while the dash was out.

The non-ML dashboard without the center speaker had no trouble installing in place of the ML w/ center speaker. Just one less bracket to move from the old dash to the new one.

 

[Rednexus]

Thanks! Sounds likeca NBD job. Eill post here when i get around to doing mine.

 

[CarGuyCarl]

I didn't replace my dash, at least not yet, but I have it off twice when I replaced my AC Evap core.

It really isn't a bad job. It is very straight forward.

 

[edes300]

I replaced my dash 2 years ago it was cracked all over, I also had a AC leak that I traced back to the evaporator core. Overall not a bad job just take lots of pictures. Move the seats all the way back or remove them so you have more room. I posted my work on club lexus under same name. Good luck.

 

[CarGuyCarl]

I've saved a bunch of random files too that helped me with the job. They are PDFs of the shop manual. I'd be happy to share if I knew how.

 

[morgan85]

Dashes are not to hard. I use to work at Toyota and did a bunch of dashes replacements under warranty on the sedans. You need to understand that even if you are careful you are more than likely going to brake some plastic bits they get brittle over time. We use to warn customers of that fact that you get a free dash but not plastic bits.